South African President Cyril Ramaphosa welcomed the United States’ support for two permanent African seats on the United Nations Security Council but criticised the lack of veto rights for the continent.
During a press conference on Friday, Ramaphosa said without veto power, African countries would be treated as “second-class citizens.”
On Thursday, the U.S. expressed support for adding two permanent seats for Africa but said these seats should not have veto rights, a privilege currently held by the permanent members — Britain, China, France, Russia, and the U.S.
Ramaphosa stressed that excluding a continent with 1.3 billion people from full participation diminishes the UN’s role.
“We demand and require that we should have serious participation on the UN Security Council,” he said, adding that Africa should not be given a “second-class” position at the council.
Currently, African nations hold three non-permanent seats on the Council on a rotation basis, but any change to permanent membership would require approval by two-thirds of the UN’s 193 member states. Additionally, council resolutions must be agreed upon unanimously by the five permanent members before being adopted.
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